In July 1945, after the success of the Trinity Test, President Truman ordered that the new atomic bombs be ready for assembly and potential use as quickly as possible.

In July 1945, representatives of the victorious Allies met in the heart of Germany, in the Berlin suburb of Potsdam.

World War II had been so horrible that the victorious powers decided that nothing like it must ever happen again.  President Roosevelt’s dream had been to establish a “United Nations” (UN) organization, in which the peace-loving nations of the world would settle disputes and intervene to punish aggression, but it was Truman who saw it through.

With the war in Europe over, the Allied powers had to turn to the difficult business of governing Germany and the other occupied territories.

The war in Europe was over, but fighting raged in the Pacific.